Let me start by saying that I respect wealthy people. I do not think that being in poverty is honorable and being wealthy is a shame. I do not even believe that all oligarchs in Russia and Armenia became wealthy through lying, cheating, or tax evasion. Even if that is the case, that is a problem that law enforcement agencies have to deal with.
I am more concerned about the low educational level of the wealthy in the post-Soviet period, as well as their poor attitude, bad taste, and ostentation. I’m worried because, whether we like it or not, they impose certain values on our society.
I cannot help but be concerned about the double standards of the government supporters. When the Prosperous Armenia Party had formed a coalition with the government, Tsarukyan was not an oligarch, but a “large businessman.” The taste of the latter and the tendencies of the “newcomers” did not concern those people. But when the same businessman started to appear as a part of the opposition, people started to write angry “statuses” about his low level.
By the way, it is not impossible that My Step will act in the same style as the “classical” ruling party and include “its” oligarch on the pre-election list, and maybe also a number of oligarchs “inherited” from Serzh Sargsyan who serve the newcomers with the same level of enthusiasm as they did the former regime. It is very possible that they refer to Pashinyan as “dear boss” or “dear king.” Naturally, for every word of praise, they get some business advances as they did in the past. Can you say that these people are different from Tsarukyan in their internal worlds or approaches to life? Or were their wedding cakes smaller?
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But the tastelessness and ignorance of the wealthy over the past 30 years should not be seen as an isolated phenomenon, but in the general social context. If “consumerism” is the main trend in society, it should come as no surprise that mansions, luxury cars, and stars singing at expensive weddings are becoming the pinnacles of every young person’s wedding. When someone speaks as an overly harsh critic of the oligarchs, I’m sorry, but I have trouble believing that these harsh critics themselves do not dream of having golden toilets.
I believe that those buried in the sins of arrogance and greed (as well as any others) can be corrected, if not themselves, then their descendants. One of the most famous theologians of the 13-14th centuries, Meister Eckhart, said, “There is no beast that has nothing in common with man in time.”
Aram Abrahamyan
